


Ready

by HallowsEve



Series: Happily NEVER After: Supernatural Edition [3]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alpha Benny Lafitte, Alpha Claire Novak, Alpha Dean Winchester, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - A/B/O, Castiel is a BAMF, Dean is Bad at Feelings, F/M, Good Lucifer (Supernatural), Implied Mpreg, M/M, Mild Language, Omega Castiel, Protective Benny Lafitte, Protective Lucifer (Supernatural)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-11
Updated: 2018-06-12
Packaged: 2019-04-21 17:57:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 10,106
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14290263
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HallowsEve/pseuds/HallowsEve
Summary: 16 years ago Dean’s entire world came tumbling down when his Omega fling, Castiel, told him he was pregnant. Panicked at the idea of being a dad at 17, Dean did the one thing he never thought he’d do, he pushed Cas away. It was for the best through right? After all, Sammy needed him. – AU: A/B/O verse (NOT A DESTIEL ENDING)





	1. Surprise! It's a Girl!

**Author's Note:**

> OMG why do the majority of stories where Dean’s a jerk in high school and treats Castiel like crap end up with Dean just saying sorry and Cas falling back into his arms because love and all that rot? Yeah, no. My Cas isn’t some weak hormone driven Omega. He’s pissed and he has the right to be and I’ll be damned if Dean is getting away with it here. You made your bed, Dean, lay in it…and I really wanted to write Alpha!Claire who isn’t afraid to tell Dean what’s up. 
> 
> Not beta read. All mistakes are my own. Don't care to reread to correct them. Italic section is a flashback.

Dean has had quite a few moments in his life where somewhere in the back of his mind, he’s asking himself if this is really his life? Though none as big as the one he was currently having. In hindsight, there were probably better ways of handling the situation, but really, Dean was never really one to think things through entirely. He was more of an act now and ask questions later sort of guy.

It’s why he’s currently sitting in the security office at the mall with a bag of ice on his undoubtedly broken nose waiting for the parent of the Alpha who attacked him to show up.

Yes, parent, because of course Dean would have his Alpha ass handed to him by a teenager. Not only just a teenager, but a teenage girl and to add further salt into the wound, his own daughter.

In his defense, he hadn’t really expected the girl to react so strongly to him. It wasn’t like he started his day planning to spontaneously run into the child he abandoned in his youth and for the meeting to go wonderful.

Oh sure, over the years he had wondered what happened to the gorgeous blue-eyed Omega who he treated like absolute shit in high school and of course what happened to the child he had been pregnant with at the time. He didn’t even know if Cas terminated the pregnancy or gave the pup up for adoption because he didn’t want to think about it. It made it real. It was easier to play his role of popular Alpha and take a different guy or chick to bed each weekend and keeping up the façade he had worked so hard to create. Hell, he had hooked up with Bela the same night Cas told him he was pregnant.

Abandoning Cas and their pup went against everything that Dean’s Alpha felt instinctively. Though he held his impassive expression strong in the face of Cas’s anger and disappointment, inside his Alpha was snarling and all but demanding he apologize and wrap the other teen in his arms and scent him to calm him. When Cas failed to show to school the following Monday, Dean could barely keep from snarling at anyone who looked at him funny. When he had heard through the grapevine that Cas moved away he wanted to search out the Omega, mate him and mark him as his own and celebrate the life growing inside his gorgeous mate. He didn’t though. He couldn’t. Sam needed him. Their dad was gone more than he was around and it was up to Dean to keep food on the table and clothes on Sammy’s back so he did what he had to do. No matter what the cost was to him.

Dean justified how horrible treatment to Cas with reminders that it was for the best. Sam needed him. He needed food and clothes and to have as normal a life a teenager should have because it was Dean’s responsibility to protect him and take care of him. It always had been. Cas came from a wealthy family and they’d be able to support the pup if Cas decided to keep him or her. And Dean thought it was all worth it for years. Especially when Sam graduated law school and married his college sweetheart Sarah Blake. It wasn’t until Sam and Sarah announced they were expecting that Dean really keenly felt the pain of what he did. Sam was a typical Alpha and very doting and protective of his Beta wife. Watching Sam and Sarah celebrate their pregnancy and glow with utter happiness reminded Dean that he may have a pup out there and he vowed if he ever got to find him or her he’d make it up to them and to Cas and if Cas was still single, maybe he could try again and not royally fuck things up.

Except he wouldn’t now.

The cold blue eyes glaring at him through the glass window told him that.

If he wasn’t currently trying to keep from wincing in pain, he’d be rather proud at how strong his Alpha daughter turned out. She was undeniably beautiful, a near perfect combination of Dean and Cas, but she wasn’t vain about it. In fact, it was almost like she didn’t realize how pretty she actually was. She was also tough. She clearly inherited Dean’s temperament, but also got Cas’s quick wit so her words were barbed well enough to really hit those sore spots. And she was angry. Very, _very_ angry.

“Sir, did you want to press charges?” The soft spoken security guard asked, his wide brown eyes darting between Dean and his daughter.

“No, that’s okay.” Dean tried to give the poor young Beta a smile, but it came out more like a grimace.

“Hey, don’t do me any favors in there, Hasselhoff!” The blonde Alpha yelled to him as the security guard slipped back into the office she was being held in.

Dean closed his eyes and tipped his head back on the chair he was sitting on, his hand holding the ice to his throbbing nose and he considered how he was going to go forward from here. He hadn’t really meant for things to spiral out of control, but they had and rapidly.

_Dean walked towards the food court, eager to get some snacks while he waited on Sam’s text. Why Dean offered to pick up whatever piece of jewelry Sam had chosen for Sarah was beyond Dean. He hated the mall and he hated shopping, but when Sam gave him those wide puppy dog eyes Dean couldn’t say no. It wasn’t like Sam was being lazy. He was in trial and his anniversary with Sarah was coming up and he knew he wouldn’t be able to break away from his wife without arousing suspicion. So he asked Dean to go and promised to send a text with every piece of information, including a picture that Dean could just show to the sales lady so he didn’t have to try to make any hard decisions._

_Of course Sam was taking forever. Perhaps his recess hadn’t started as early as he thought, but not much Dean could do about that and he certainly wasn’t going to come back again so he figured he could waste time with food. He loved food. He didn’t even have to be hungry to eat food._

_Dean stood in line for the pizza place, rolling his eyes at the giggling teenage girls in front of him, but still offering a flirty wink to one girl who blushed so red at having been caught at checking him out. They were all Betas. He could smell that much and all were definitely jail bait so of no interest to Dean._

_“Hey Chrissy!”_

_Dean turned his head when he heard a voice call out and Dean felt like he had been punched in his chest. Approaching the girls was a tall blonde girl with familiar bright blue eyes and dressed in torn jeans and a faded Styx shirt. Her blonde curls bounced as she approached her friends and like some scene from some ridiculous romantic comedy that Dean swore he hated, while secretly loving, both the blonde and Dean seemed to scent each other at the same time. The young blonde stopped in her tracks, her eyes focused on Dean and her hands clenching at her sides. Dean stared back, nostrils flaring as he took in a scent that was so familiar, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on. He took one step forward, the girl taking one step back, her glare getting more fierce._

_“Who are you?” Dean asked, ignoring the girls who were now watching them in worry._

_“Who are you?” The girl shot back, her arms crossing defensively across her chest. Dean noted how she looked him up and down with thinly veiled disdain. It was obvious she knew exactly who he was._

_“I’m Dean.” He put his hands out at his side, a gesture to show he was no threat._

_“Tell me something I don’t know, jackass.” The girl sneered. Dean reared back before narrowing his gaze at the younger Alpha, because now that he was close enough he could scent she was all Alpha._

_“Hey, chill out, Miley Cyrus.” Dean snapped._

_“Fuck off, Hasselhoff. What do you want?”_

_“Claire!” The brunette Beta that Dean had winked at gasped in surprise._

_“What do I want?” Dean repeated in surprise. What he wanted was to not be having this awkward conversation so publicly._

_“What are you doing here?” Claire’s eyes darted around as though trying to assess the easiest way to escape the situation._

_“Trying to buy some pizza.” Because duh, he was in line!_

_“Claire, do you know him?” The brunette slowly shuffled towards her friend, still keeping a keen eye on Dean._

_“Sure.” Claire scoffed, rolling her eyes. “He’s the piece of shit of who abandoned my dad and I.”_

_The group of girls gasped in sequence, but Dean ignored them in favor of glaring in response at the younger Alpha. Okay, so he technically abandoned her and Cas, but it wasn’t like that._

_“I didn’t abandon you!” Dean barked, his face flushing in anger._

_“Guess I missed you at the holidays and birthday parties.”_

_Dean took a deep breath to calm his anger. He obviously was giving on pissed off Alpha something fierce given the wide birth the teenage girls were giving him now and the cautious stares he was getting from a few larger males who were watching the interaction closely, clearly willing to step in to protect the younger blonde. It occurred to Dean how this must appear to random bystanders and tried to calm himself down._

_“This isn’t the place to have this conversation.” Dean supplied neutrally, trying to diffuse the situation. “Where is Cas?”_

_Claire’s entire body went rigid when she heard her dad’s name and Dean noticed how her eyes narrowed dangerously._

_“You stay the hell away from my dad!” Claire growled, her anger escalating. “If you go anywhere near him, I will kick your ass.”_

_“I’d like to see you try, Princess.”_

So perhaps goading his obviously irate daughter wasn’t his best move, but he hadn’t exactly been expecting her to sock him right in the face. But she had. No sooner the words left his mouth did he take a fist right to the face. It had surprised him too, enough that he ended up on his ass with the younger Alpha being held back by some burly man who had been watching their interaction. Moments later security arrived and now they were stuck inside the security office awaiting Claire’s dad, awaiting Cas.

Dean allowed his mind to draw back on memories of the blue-eyed Omega. Hands down, Cas was the most beautiful person he had ever been with, both inside and out. He had been so smart and passionate, always arguing with others about human rights and unwilling to back down. His no bullshit attitude had been one of the things Dean found most attractive about him. Despite being an Omega, Cas was anything but submissive and meek. Hell, if someone didn’t smell Cas it would be easy to think he was an Alpha.

Dean was jerked from his memories when he heard a door open and a deep rumble of a familiar voice, a voice that still sounded smokey and gravely and so damn sexy. And now was _not_ the time for his body to be reacting. Dean slowly opened his eyes and looked to the next room to see Claire talking frantically and gesturing towards him and standing in front of her was the beautiful Omega who still had wide angelic blue eyes that were so bright they almost appeared inhuman. Dean waved to Cas, but Cas didn’t respond beyond narrowing his eyes.

A ping drew Dean’s attention, reminding him of the task he had been sent to the mall for. As expected, Sam had forwarded him a picture of a necklace and an insane amount of details. Did Sam really think Sarah cared what karat the gold was? Dean didn’t think so. Dean quickly typed back a response and pocketed his phone, just in time for Cas to enter the room.

“Hey, Cas.” Dean smiled, remaining in his chair when he saw Claire stiffen and glare at him from the other room.

“Hello, Dean.” Cas sighed and shoved his hands into the pockets of his tan trench coat that covered his simple suit and backwards blue tie. It was very creepy sex offender like, but Dean wasn’t about to say that.

“So uh…yeah…she mine?” Dean rubbed the back of his head, a nervous tick he had always had. He was unsurprised when Cas’s eyes narrowed dangerously and his lips pursed in a unpleasant frown.

“Biologically, yes. Legally, no.” Cas snipped. “You have no legal claim to Claire nor will you ever have one.”

Dean reared back in shock at the confrontational tone in his former boyfriend’s voice.

“I just asked if she was my kid. Didn’t say I was going to take her.” Dean stood quickly from his chair and began pacing the small room like a caged animal. His hackles were up. He was a cross between totally aggravated at Cas’s attitude towards him and slightly turned on. He still found it beyond thrilling how little Cas cared about his Omega designation and how little he allowed it to affect his interactions.

“It’s moot. We will be leaving tomorrow anyway to return home.” Cas looked over his shoulder at his daughter and raised his hand when she gestured for him to come back into the room. “I trust we will not be hearing from you again?”

“I….I – “ Dean trailed off as the lump took up residence in his throat. He knew he should say no. That it wouldn’t be fair to just go strolling back into Claire’s life when she was 15, but a huge part of him wanted to say yes. Now that he _knew_ he had a daughter, he couldn’t walk away from her.

“The correct answer is no, Dean.” Cas’s tonelessly supplied when words failed Dean.

“I had to.” Dean blurted out much to both their shock. “Dad was always gone and I had to take care of Sammy, Cas. He was only 13!”

“And I was 17 and pregnant and scared, but little thought you gave that or the child we created.” Cas huffed.

“I didn’t know you had her!” Dean ran his hands through his hair roughly. Did someone raise the temperature in the room? It felt hot and stifling.

“Excuse me?” Cas narrowed his eyes once again, his expression incredulous. “I told you I was pregnant, Dean! I told you that you were the father and do you remember what you said?”

Dean tugged at his hair, staring at Cas in disbelief. Was Cas honestly asking him what he said 16 years ago?!

“You said, and allow me to quote you, that you wanted nothing to do with my bastard pup and never wanted to see us again.” Cas hissed, leaning forward slightly which caused Dean to lean back. “You rejected me. You rejected _her_! And I will be damned if you are going to walk back into her life 16 years later because you finally got your own life figured out.”

“She’s my daughter!” Dean barked, his Alpha now growing angry.

“No, she’s not.” Cas shook his head, unmoved by Dean’s growing anger. “She’s biologically the child you created, but you have zero legal claim to her and she has zero desire to get to know you. You legally abandoned her and 10 years ago she was legally adopted by my mate. You have absolutely no claim to Claire.”

“I never approved an adoption!” Dean exclaimed as his hopeful future slipped between his fingers.

“You didn’t have to.” Cas bit back. “You abandoned her. When the necessary time passed, I filed the papers and you did not contest them. You were sent them, Dean. What you did with them, I have no clue, but you have zero legal standing here and if you come near _my_ daughter again, I will not be held responsible for my actions. A pissed off Alpha has nothing on a protective Omega, Dean.”

“Please, Cas, please. I’m sorry. I’m so fucking sorry. I wish I could go back in time and undo my mistakes, but I can’t. Please, I’m begging you, just let me talk to her. Let me get to know her.” Dean didn’t even try to hide the tears that were stinging his eyes. He knew that he had never been a part of his own daughter’s life by his own choice, but that didn’t mean he didn’t want to try to make up for that. “I know I made mistakes and I know I shouldn’t have pushed you away. I should have stepped up and done my duty as her dad, but I couldn’t, Cas. Please understand that. I could barely keep a roof over Sammy’s head, how the hell was I going to support a kid? I was just a kid myself!”

“And what about the next year, Dean?” Cas took a threatening step forward, his blue eyes darkening in anger. “Or the year after that, or the 13 that followed?! Where were you? I trust Sam is no longer living under your roof nor needing you to support him. I would not have stopped you if you tried to get to know your daughter, but not now. The damage is done. You made your choices and I made mine and more importantly, Claire has made hers. She has no wishes to get to know you and I will respect that. If at some point she decides to reach out to you, that’s her choice, but I will not allow you to bully your way into her life because you feel guilty over your past. She deserves better than that.”

Dean opened his mouth to retort, but found his words cut off when the door slammed open and a clearly pissed off Claire entered the room, moving to stand in front of her dad and glaring at Dean.

“We’re done here.” Claire seethed as the blue in her eyes was rimmed by red. It wasn’t unheard of for an Alpha’s eyes to shift color due to anger, but Dean was surprised someone as young as Claire was able to do it. It spoke volumes to her Alpha designation, but also the love and desire to protect her Omega father.

Dean raised his hands in a placating fashion, hopeful to soothe his irate daughter. “Claire, please. You need to understand – “

“Oh I understand perfectly.” Claire scoffed. “You abandoned us because you were too damn scared to be a parent and that’s fine, I don’t care. Dad didn’t need you and I don’t need you. Dad is mated now and Papa is more an Alpha than you could ever hope to be.”

“I just want to get to know you.” The older Alpha’s voice was choked off with emotion, but it seemed to have no effect on the other two.

“It’s a little too late for that. I don’t want to ever see you again. You’re _not_ my papa and you never will be.” Claire turned her back on Dean, moving closer to Cas and grabbing his hand. “Can we please go dad? I don’t want to be here anymore.”

“Of course, Claire.” Cas smiled at his daughter and gestured for her to go through the door, the suit clad man turning to look over his shoulder at Dean one last time. “Stay away from my daughter. This is the only warning you will get.” 

Dean wanted to scream out to Cas and Claire as they walked away hand in hand, Claire casually flipping him the bird behind her. He wanted to beg Claire to forgive him and give him a chance to explain himself. He wanted to apologize to Cas for abandoning him when he was pregnant and treating him like total shit, but it appeared he wouldn’t get that chance. There was no love or warmth in the two sets of cold blue eyes that had looked at him. There was no desire to welcome Dean into the life they had created. Dean dropped back down into the seat and buried his head into his hands feeling the weight of his past come down upon him like quick sand, smothering out all joy he had felt. He had no one to blame for his misery, but himself and that realization sucked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story could have gone on for chapters, but I really don’t want to take on a chaptered fic so I’m going to put a couple things that I did think for this story, but will not be putting to paper. 
> 
> Dean did tell Sam about Claire because Sam is a lawyer and he wanted to see if there was anything he could do. Sam was super pissed, but offered to look into it and finds there is no legal action Dean can take. Dean was served papers, but he lost them and totally forgot about the papers before he even opened the envelope. Finding out Dean had a child he abandoned really upset Sam, especially expecting a child of his own, and the two had a pretty tense relationship for a while following that. Sam did try to reach out to Cas to see if they could work something out, but Cas turned him down and then Cas’s Alpha turned him down. Sam backed off after that. 
> 
> Claire never wanted to get to know Dean. She’s hurt and rightfully so and has come to terms with her biological father not wanting to get to know her and has made her peace with it. She’s also very happy with her papa, who technically is her adoptive dad, but it takes more than genetics to make a parent. As far as Claire is concerned, she’s happy with her two dads and has no desire to bring Dean into the mix. She did fall into a slight depression after meeting Dean because she was afraid he would try to fight in the courts to claim his rights to her, but her papa assured her it would never happen and he would never give her up. So she’s good now. 
> 
> I didn’t name Cas’s Alpha mate because I really don’t know who I had in mind. I just know he’s a good man who loves Cas and Claire and protects them. It’s also not noted in the fic, but Cas has other children with his Alpha mate, 2 boys to be exact, and his mate is as protective of Claire as he is over his own biological children because as far as he is concerned Claire is HIS daughter. 
> 
> If you want to have a headcanon they made this work out, I guess go for it. I can’t control your thoughts, but if on a whim I ever decide to continue this fic (unlikely) just know it will NOT go that way. There are some mistakes you can’t undo and this was one of them. Sorry, not sorry.


	2. 6 Months Later

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 6 months after meeting Claire and seeing Cas, Dean makes an impulse decision to seek them out. Things don't go according to his plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Decided to take a break from the prompt fic I’m working on, which is turning out to be much longer than I anticipated. *sigh* I needed a break though so this was born. And also I got a string of reviews on this series from someone who apparently couldn’t read tags or notes or be ballsed to actually take a moment to think that not everyone in this world likes the stupid over the top completely unrealistic happy ending for the sake of their OTP and to add insult, they DELETED their comments before I could respond. So out of spite, this no happy ending for Dean was born. So there!
> 
> Not beta read and written in an anger induced state so all mistakes are my own.

“Dean, this is quite possibly the dumbest idea you’ve ever had.”

Dean rolled his eyes at Sam’s tone. He could actually hear the bitch face his brother was no doubt sporting through the phone.

“Sammy – “

“No, Dean.” Sam interrupted him harshly. “This is stupid and incredibly risky. Legally, I cannot protect you if his Alpha reacts poorly.”

“Didn’t ask you to!” Dean grit back, eyes focused on the steering wheel before him.

“Turn the car around and go home.”

“I can’t.” Dean heaved a sigh, resting his forehead against the steering wheel and closing his eyes. It wasn’t that easy. “Sammy, I can’t just walk away without trying. I get you are trying to protect me, but I don’t need your protection. I’ll call you when I leave.”

Dean didn’t even give Sam the chance to respond before hanging up the call and promptly turning his phone off. He sat in his beloved baby, forehead resting against the steering wheel while the emotional war raged on inside him.

Sam wasn’t wrong. What Dean was doing _was_ incredibly risky, but where they didn’t agree was that Dean didn’t think this was stupid. In fact, he thought the exact opposite.

It had been almost 6 months since Dean met his daughter and saw Cas once again. 6 months since the heated conversation between Alpha and Omega and 6 months since both of them walked out of his life.

He had been in a state of shock in the hours that followed the emotional meeting, sitting with his head in his hands on the chair in the security office. Hours passed, but Dean didn’t feel them pass. It felt like a blink before the soft spoken, nervous Beta security guard cleared his throat and told Dean the mall was closing. Dean had nodded his understanding and somehow managed to hold his own body weight up with his shaky two legs and made his way towards his car. It was as though he was on auto-pilot. His body went through the motions and he was shocked from his emotional stupor when he realized he was sitting in the driveway to Sam’s house. He hadn’t even remembered driving there, but the moment he saw Sam’s house he _knew_ what he had to do. He had to try!

With newfound determination, Dean had knocked on Sam’s door like a crazed madman, uncaring that it was after 9 pm and that Sarah was most likely in bed. Sam was a lawyer and Sam could help him figure out what legal rights he had to his daughter. There had to be something and if there was, he knew Sam would find it.

What Dean failed to consider, because god forbid the man think anything through, was the possible reactions Sam and Sarah would have to the news that Dean had a child that he had not seen before that day.

Sam, who had been concerned when he saw the state of Dean’s bruised face and busted nose, quickly became scathing pissed. His younger brother, who was normally so calm and level headed, had shocked Dean and Sarah alike when he had punched Dean in his already swollen face. He made no apologies. He made no excuses. The moment Dean’s lips stopped moving, Sam had punched him and then promptly told Dean to get out of his house.

Dean was normally one to stand up to Sam, but he chose wisely to not on this occasion. Not when betrayal, hurt and anger radiated so brightly in Sam’s eyes. Sarah had calmly handed Dean an ice pack with her jaw set and a glisten in her sad eyes and said Dean should probably go.

Sam didn’t speak to Dean for over a week. The longest the two had ever gone without speaking and it was quite possibly one of the worst weeks in Dean’s life. Dean was considering outright begging when he got the text from Sarah to come over for dinner.

The dinner had been cold and tense, both Alphas moving their food around more than eating, but in the end, Sam came around. Or more like, Sarah pushed him around. Despite his anger, Sam agreed to hear Dean out and see if there was anything he could do. Everything came out in one long run on sentence that Dean took no breaks in between. By the end Sam looked something between angry, disappointed and determined. He had told Dean in no uncertain terms that what he did was shitty and that it wasn’t fair of him to do that to Cas, Claire, himself or even Sam. Dean’s head had dropped when Sam’s eyes got misty and his bottom lip trembled while he explained how awful he feels knowing that he’s the reason Dean walked away from his own child. Dean tried to interrupt multiple times, but Sam wouldn’t hear it. Dean had his chance and now it was Sam’s and that hurt Dean because Sam didn’t deserve to feel guilty. He didn’t make the decision, he didn’t even know and yet now Sam felt like in some way it was his fault a young Omega had to be a single parent and a young girl had felt rejected by her own dad.

Sarah, got love the sweet Beta, had eventually gotten the brother’s to see reason that they could not undo what had been done and it was time to figure out how they could move forward. Sarah was practical like that and it made Dean love her even more because she knew the brother’s had and endless supply of baggage from abandonment issues to codependency, but she somehow made them keep moving forward.

Sam’s research abruptly ended nearly as fast as it had began.

Cas had been diligent in following the laws, all of them, to ensure there was no loophole Dean could find to wiggle in and reclaim his rights to Claire. Not that he wanted to take Claire from her dad, Dean had zero desires to put either of them through that, but he wanted to get to know his daughter. He wanted to be allowed to talk to her and to see her and try to build some type of bond with her. He knew, logically and because Sarah reminded him nearly every time they talked about her, that Dean could never be Claire’s dad. That she would never see him in the way she saw her Omega dad or her adopted Alpha dad and that the best Dean could hope for is becoming more like a trusted friend. And Dean was okay with that. He knew there was nothing he could do to erase the pain he had caused Cas and Claire, but he had to at least try to make it up to them.

3 months after Dean and Cas ran into one another, Sam delivered the painful news that the paperwork was ironclad and there were no legal loopholes. Dean sat staring at his small niece in his arms, gently rocking her and trying to resist the urge to cry. He couldn’t even respond. The lump in his throat was so large that no words could be formed. He just nodded and bit his bottom lip, eyes staying glued on the small child in his arms. His niece, Mary, slept soundly unknowing of the pain around her. Dean couldn’t lift his eyes from her. Had Claire been that small? Had she been a good sleeper and eater like Mary was? Was she born with a full head of hair or bald like his niece?

Sam kept talking, his eyes focused on Dean while Sarah rubbed Dean’s back gently. Cas was currently a pediatrician in Los Angeles and was married and bonded to an Alpha named Benjamin Lafitte. Cas and his Alpha had bonded and mated when Claire was 5 and that same year Cas had started the paperwork to sever Dean’s rights to Claire and allow his mate to adopt Claire as his own. Sam had pointed out that Dean had been served papers and sighed in frustration when he told Dean they were uncontested by him. Dean didn’t reply. There wasn’t anything to say. He couldn’t even remember being served papers, but Sam assured him he had. Sam, the awesome brother that he was, even did more research into Cas and his current life and learned that Cas and his Alpha lived in a nice upper class neighborhood, Claire and the 2 young boys Cas had with his mate attended private school and his mate was a chef and owner to a small Cajun inspired seafood restaurant that did a rather healthy business and also owned a small diner that was rumored to have the best pie on the West Coast.

Dean didn’t speak much the rest of the night. He thanked Sam for his help and gave Sarah a kiss on her cheek, Mary a kiss on her forehead and had left to drink himself stupid. Dean struggled for weeks trying to move forward, but found that to be an impossible feat. He couldn’t get his mind off Claire or Cas. He couldn’t stop wondering if they were okay or if Claire was still angry. He couldn’t help wondering how Cas had made college and medical school work while being a single parent. He had so many unanswered questions and Sarah had been the most honest and brutal with Dean in her response to him, that he perhaps didn’t deserve to know. That he walked away and when you do that you accept the consequences of your actions. Sam had been more understanding, knowing Dean his whole life and knowing how selfless the man was pushed Sam to keep trying. He even tried calling Cas to talk to him. He begged and pleaded and tried to get Cas to agree to let Claire at least talk to Dean. Cas had shut him down before he could even finish his thought.

Sam tried for 2 months. He left voicemail after voicemail and email after email. He knew they had no legal recourse so the only thing he could do was try to get Cas to understand Dean’s side. Ultimately those attempts failed when Sam had gotten a rather terse phone call from a deep voice with a deep Louisiana accent. Benny, as it turned out Cas’s mate didn’t like being called Benjamin, had told Sam in no uncertain terms that if he didn’t cease his harassment of Cas, Benny would take action. Sam had offered a soft apology and hung up the phone defeated as ever.

Sam told Dean over dinner about his attempts and ultimately Benny telling Sam to back off or else. Dean had nodded with a small forced smile and thanked Sam for his help and said he was tired and would head home early.

In hindsight, that would be a clue to Sam that Dean was going to do something stupid.

Dean called in to the shop and took some time off work and then drove all night to LA to find his daughter and Cas. Locating them had been stupidly easy and like a creeper, Dean watched from a distance as the family went about their life. Cas drove a stupid, ugly, and no doubt very highly rated for safety, minivan and Benny drove a decent looking SUV, though Dean didn’t miss the cherry red old restored Mustang in the third bay of the garage. The house that Cas and Claire lived in was beautiful and definitely something well out of Dean’s price range, but not in any type of pretentious gated community. It had a nice front yard with a flower accented walkway. There was a big tree in the front yard that screamed treehouse needed and all in all, the house very much so reminded Dean of that stupid Father of the Bride movie that Sarah made him watch with her. She had suggested it. And you know, Dean didn’t have the heart to argue with her and he of course didn’t cry or anything.

Cas and Claire’s life looked idyllic to Dean. Claire was all smiles and sass as she corralled her 2 brothers for her dad, all 3 of them in matching navy blue and white school uniforms, and Cas looked at ease carrying 2 backpacks and his own messenger bag. Benny was nothing like Dean expected in this neighborhood. Benny looked like someone Dean would have been friends with and met on the regular for pool at the local dive bar. He was a tall and broad man, a dark blonde beard on his face and looked out of place in his worn in jeans, black boots and faded Styx shirt. He was definitely all Alpha in looks and had a deep booming laugh.

Dean ducked down and hid when Cas and his kids loaded up in their van and drove off and Benny stood in the driveway like some lovesick Alpha waving them on. It killed Dean to witness it. Claire and Cas’s life had moved on and by the looks of it, thrived without Dean there. He knew he should walk away and let them live their lives, but it was so hard. Before Dean had walked away from an idea, a mere concept, now he was walking away from a real life and real people. He wasn’t walking away from the idea of being a father, he was walking away from his daughter and that didn’t sit well with him.

He drove endlessly, lost in his thoughts and ignoring Sam’s calls until he found himself parked in the parking lot for Benny’s diner. He knew Benny was there. He saw the man’s SUV parked in the back and he had this overwhelming need to talk to the Alpha. Perhaps if he could get Benny to see he wasn’t a bad guy, maybe Benny would allow him to reach out to Claire and maybe allow Dean to see how his daughter was doing.

It was quite possibly the dumbest thing he would ever do, next to walking away from Cas all those years ago, but he had to _try._

With his phone still turned off, Dean tucked it into his pocket and got out of his baby, walking towards the diner determined.

The diner was homey and some place Dean could see himself eating at regularly if it were back in Kansas. It was an updated boxcar with classic red and white vinyl booths, black and white checkerboard floors and a counter at the bar with a display sitting behind it of at least 15 different pies. Being an odd time of day, minutes before 8 pm, the place was near empty. Only a couple booths towards the back were occupied with a few young couples laughing and enjoying their evening.

Dean looked around, smiling politely at the young brunette server.

“How many in your party sir?” The young girl, most likely not many years older than Claire asked, as she turned to grab a menu.

“Uh, just me. I’ll sit at the bar if that’s okay.” Dean gestured and sighed when the young girl waved him on before turning to the booths in the back to refill drinks and put down the checks.

Dean sat on one of the stools closest to the door, easy enough to make an escape if needed and tapped his fingers on the dark counter. He unconsciously stiffened when Benny came out from the kitchen area and nodded at him with a small smile. Benny didn’t know who he was so Dean needed to try to keep himself calm lest the meeting end sooner than he wanted it to.

“Need a menu, brotha?” Benny asked as he grabbed one from a stack behind the counter.

“Uh, no, thanks. Just coffee and a slice of pecan pie please.” Dean gave what he hoped was a friendly smile and seemed to hit the mark since Benny turned his back to him and got the slice of pie and the coffee without further comment.

Pie and coffee placed, Dean watched casually as Benny moved around the counter, cleaning and organizing and completely unaware of the mental breakdown Dean was having. He did laugh though when Dean moaned obscenely at the flavor from the pie. Rumors were true, Benny made a damn good pie.

“Need a moment there, brotha?” Benny snorted with a small smile.

“Sorry, man, just damn good pie.” Dean slowed his bites and chews, savoring the delicious flavor.

“Thank you. Been baking a long time. Nice to know it’s appreciated.”

Dean nodded and resumed eating, his foot bouncing on the foot rest on the stool in nerves.

“If I lived around here, I’d be here all the time. Love me some pie.” Dean smiled around his bite.

“Hear that a lot.” Benny chuckled before leaning back against the counter and crossing his arms across his broad chest. “You here on business or pleasure?”

“Uh, neither I guess.” Dean sighed, buying some time with a sip of his coffee.

“Benny, the last tables just took off, it cool with you if I skip out?” The young waitress called from the door, giving Dean time to come up with an excuse or something to offer Benny. He saw on the door that the place closed at 8:00 and he was the last customer. He was reluctant to see the young girl, a potential witness in his death, leave, but it was for the best that Dean do this alone.

“Yeah,” Benny nodded, throwing the towel that was over his shoulder onto the counter and moving towards the side to exit from behind the counter. “Excuse me a moment, gotta walk her out.”

Dean nodded without a word and waited quietly as Benny walked the young woman to her car and then come back, turning the sign to closed as he came back.

“Sorry, guess I’m keeping you here late, huh?” Dean chuckled, placing his fork on his now empty plate.

“No worries, I stay late cleaning up and getting things ready anyway. No rush.” Benny smiled kindly and resumed his daily tasks.

“It’s a nice place here though, awesome pie and comfortable vibe.” Dean reluctantly admitted aloud, glancing around again and completely freezing when his eyes settled on a picture by the register behind the counter. He recognized Claire and the 2 boys he assumed were her brothers.

“Your family?” Dean nods his head towards the pic, his tone light and friendly.

“Yeah, they’re my kids.” Benny smiled widely, his blue eyes light and full of love. “A house full of Alphas, feel bad for my mate.”

Dean laughed along with Benny though his laugh was more forced and less warm than Benny’s.

“There were 2 Alpha kids in my family. My brother and I, can’t imagine more than that. Maybe one of your younger ones will surprise you.” Dean shrugged feigning nonchalance.

“Nah, Danny and Benji will follow their sister and be Alphas. They got that snarl thing going for them already, but makes sense, my mate is a really strong Omega so most mistake him for an Alpha before they realize.” Dean hated how fond Benny’s expression is when talking about Cas, but immediately stomps it down unwilling to ruin the friendly rapport he’s built up thus far.

Dean opens his mouth to respond, but is cut short when Benny’s phone starts ringing. The Cajun man holds a finger up to Dean and answers with a smile.

“Hey baby girl. Yeah, I’m staying late to close up shop. No, don’t stay up to wait for me, Claire-Bear. We can talk about it tomorrow. I got it under control, I promise. Sleep tight. I love ya too.” Benny chuckles as he disconnects the call, shaking his head with a smile completely unaware of the inner turmoil the call had put Dean into.

“Your mate?” Dean asks in what he hopes is a super causal and friendly way, but realizes late that he missed the mark seems Benny had _just_ told him his mate was a male.

“Nah, my daughter, Claire.” Benny leans on the counter with a shrug, his face going serious for a moment. “She’s a good kid, real good kid, just a teenager and ya know, drama and all that.”

Dean nods with a soft forced chuckle, but no honestly, he didn’t know that because _his_ teenage daughter wasn’t calling him about teenage drama.

“My brother has a little girl, only a few months old. I’m hoping she stays that way forever.” Dean smiles fondly and the comment is enough to pull Benny from his own pensive thoughts. The other man laughs and nods.

“Good luck, brotha, they grow up quick. One minute she was yay big,” he holds his hands apart in a gesture of measurement. “The next she’s ragging on me to work on her car.”

“Her car?” Dean’s perks up at that. Did Claire also like working on cars? “I’m a mechanic, not often you hear of girls working on cars.”

“Ah yeah, she picked it out herself. ’69 Camaro. We been working on it about 2 years now. She’s ‘bout to get her license and we’re doing the final tweaks to make sure that baby is ready to go.” Benny smiles widely.

“Wow, that’s something.” How Dean’s voice stays level is beyond him since his throat feels like it’s closing up and he’s pretty sure he was kicked in the gut.

“She’s a good kid, works hard, deserves it.” Benny nods, wiping the counters and putting away the unused utensils. “Gave us something to do together, little father-daughter bonding.”

“That’s nice.” Dean smiles, but he knows it comes across slightly forced since Benny’s brows furrow slightly.

“Ya good?” He asks. Dean nods, waving away the question.

“Yeah, just…been a long day.” He sighs heavily as the weight of the situation weighed down on him. He simultaneously wanted to crawl into a hole and never come out and rewind time to undo the mistakes he had made.

Dean stared at the counter, completely lost in his own mind for a few moments until another piece of pie, this time cherry, was placed in his line of sight.

“Wanna talk about it?” Benny asks in a kind, soft voice that Dean was surprised to hear. It wasn’t often an Alpha was so compassionate to another unknown Alpha. It spoke volumes to the type of man he was.

“Not sure.” Dean choked out passed the lump of regret as his vision blurred.

“Alright, that’s fair.” Benny agreed before heaving a heavy sigh. “Maybe just listen then, Winchester.”

Dean went ramrod straight at the mention of his last name knowing damn well and good that he did not give Benny his first name, let alone his last name. Slowly Dean raised his head, looking at the Alpha in front of him. Benny was once again leaning back against the counter with his arms crossed. His face wasn’t exactly threatening, but nor was it the understanding expression it had been.

“Yeah, I know who ya are. Wouldn’t be much of an Alpha if I didn’t notice another one sniffing around _my_ family now would I?” He smiled, but as quickly as it formed it was gone.

“You know who I am.” Dean stated the obvious, still trying to wrap his mind around things.

“Yep. Wasn’t hard to figure out when I saw the Impala hanging around the house this morning after months of your brotha tryin’ to get Cas to talk.” Benny sniffed, but otherwise gave no outward reaction to indicate his feelings.

“So what was all this?” Dean gestured at the pie and around between them, referencing the friendly banter. “Just to fuck with me?”

“No, figured no harm in answerin’ some questions if that’s all ya wanted.” Benny shrugged. “Better me than my mate or my daughter.”

“Claire –“

“Knows you’re here.” Benny interrupted forcefully. “She’s not happy about it. The waitress that left, her name is Alex, she’s Claire’s friend.”

“So she told Claire.” Dean nodded as he clenched his hands into fists to keep them from shaking.

“Yeah, I woulda when I got home anyway, but she beat me to it. I got no secrets with Cas or with Claire, especially when it comes to this.”

Dean stared at the other Alpha in completely disbelief. How could he be so calm when Dean’s heart felt moments from beating out his chest? His legs were bouncing continuously from the pent up adrenaline he was feeling.

“So this the part where you kick my ass and threaten me?” Dean chuckled humorlessly.

“Depends on why ya here.” Benny states plainly. At least the man was honest, Dean would give him that. “Ya want some info on Claire and how she’s doin’, fine by me. I can talk about my daughter all night long. Ya here to cause some issue with them, then yeah, we’re gonna have an issue.”

“I just,” Dean cut off abruptly, wiping his hand across his mouth roughly. “I just wanted to get to know her.”

“Why?” Benny asks, completely unmoved by the glare Dean shoots him.

“Because she’s my kid?” Dean barked, feeling all too vulnerable and off center by how quickly the conversation switched. Benny laughed with a small shake to his head.

“Let me enlighten ya on something here, Dean. Claire, she may be your daughter by blood, but she’s mine in every other way.” Benny’s tone was flat with a soft growl beneath it, a warning to tread lightly. “I’ve been in that girl’s life since her birth. Cas sat in this very diner eating and studying when his belly could barely fit in a booth. I held that girl and rocked her so he could get a couple hours shut eye when he started college. I taught her to ride a bike and I even did a damn daddy-daughter dance with her when she was in pre-k because Cas had an exam he couldn’t miss. I know every scratch and scar and every tear. I know her favorite color and that she hates eating veggies and fruits, but only does it ‘cause she wants to be a good example. I know she is fiercely protective of her family and willing to throw herself in front of a threat to protect them and ya know what else I know?” Benny leans forward, his hands now leaning on the counter that Dean was sitting at, his posture less welcoming and more threatening Alpha than anything. “I know that she hides her feelings behind false attitude and that girl is terrified that ya are gonna try to do something stupid and try to take her from Cas and me or that I’m gonna get scared and walk away and allow ya to see her.”

Dean clenches his jaw, but does not look away from Benny. He wants to shoot off some smart ass response or hell, throw a punch at the other man, but he finds himself completely immobile with Benny’s penetrating stare.

“She may not be my daughter by blood, but make no mistake, she is mine and there is nothin’ I wouldn’t do to protect her. So if ya here to just find out what she’s like, I’ll answer your questions, but do not think for a moment that I’ll let you anywhere near her until she asks me to. The moment my baby girl tells me she wants to talk to ya, I’ll dial the fucking phone myself. Until then, the only way ya get information will be from me. Take it or leave it.”

After a tense staring contest, Benny pulls away and resumes cleaning as though he hadn’t completely turned Dean’s world upside down. The two Alpha’s do not speak for moments, each lost in their own thoughts. Dean wants to argue with Benny, but he doesn’t have much by way of valid point. He knows that it’s shitty that he decided all these years later to try to come back and he knows that it is probably causing some serious stress in Cas and Claire’s life and the last thing he wanted to do was cause them more pain, but he couldn’t just walk away. No matter how hard he tried, he just couldn’t.

“Is she happy?” Dean finally asks, his voice choked off.

“Yeah, I think so.” Benny nods, nod looking at Dean which was a slight relief. “She’s got good grades and a lot of friends. She’s close to her cousins both here and back in Kansas. She loves her brothers and really enjoys bossin ‘em around.”

Dean snorted softly, blinking rapidly at her tears that were forming.

“What does she want to be when she grows up?” A mundane question, but one that any parent should really know about their child.

“A doctor, like her daddy.” Benny smiles with a chuckle. “Damn smart too, she’ll do it.”

“Will she ever talk to me?” Dean’s voice is a pained whisper.

“I don’t know.” Benny leaned against the counter again and chewed his lip thoughtfully. “I ain’t gonna lie. She struggled hard after she ran into ya. Real worked up and worried that ya were gonna try to do something like get the courts to reverse my adoption of her. She withdrew real hard and we were worried for some time ‘bout her.”

“Why?” Dean gasped out.

“Courts do it all the time.” Benny rubbed his eyes roughly. “No matter what, Alpha’s are given preference and it’s happened before where an Alpha comes back years later and wants his kid and the courts give the kid to ‘em. Don’t matter if they ain’t fit to raise that kid.”

Dean’s hackles went up and the slight accusation, but he remained silent.

“I tried to tell her she ain’t gotta worry ‘bout it, but she’s still a kid and like it or not, she does have abandonment issues and though she wishes she didn’t, she asks herself what’s wrong with her. Why her biological father wanted nothing to do with her.”

Dean clenched his eyes shut, pressing his hands against them roughly as if it could erase what Benny had said. He knew that pain all too well. It was the same pain he felt every time John walked away and stayed away. Every time he wasn’t good enough. The idea that he let his own child feel that, knowing how horrible of a feeling it was, gutted him.

“Ah fuck.” Benny sighed loudly and Dean pulled his hands away, noticing the lights move in the blinds and hears a car door slam. Benny moves quickly around the counter and unlocks the door, shocking Dean since he hadn’t even realized the man had locked it coming back in.

“Claire –“

“No!”

Dean turns around at the angry female bark that could only be from his daughter. Claire is standing in the doorway in jeans and a worn in black t-shirt. Her blonde curly hair is pulled up in a messy pony tail and her posture is rigid and closed off. Her arms crossed across her and her hip cocked slightly. Her face isn’t quite as closed off as it had been the last time and it killed Dean because all he could read in her blue eyes was fear.

“How did you get here?” Benny asks with a sigh, looking through the window.

“Doesn’t matter.” Claire shrugs, her eyes not leaving Dean.

Dean leaned back against the counter trying to appear as casual as possible, not wanting to set either of the Alpha’s in front of him off especially since they were blocking his primary exit.

“I told ya, I have this under control.” Benny spoke softly and Dean didn’t miss the way his large hand rubbed her back comfortingly.

“Why are you here?” Claire demands at Dean, ignoring Benny entirely. “Why can’t you just stay the fuck away like you have up to now?”

“Claire –“

“You have no legal rights!” Claire harshly interrupted him. “Uncle Lucifer made sure that everything was locked up tight, so why are you here?”

“Because I want to get to know you.” Dean finally admitted, rubbing his hands along his jeans nervously.

“Why?” Claire’s voice cracked slightly and Dean felt the urge to reach out and hug her, but was smart enough to not move. Benny rubbed her back, but Dean noticed he made no further move to comfort her.

“Because I made a mistake, Claire. A huge fucking mistake and I wish more than anything I could undo it.” Dean admitted roughly. “I know I can’t undo the past or change what I’ve done. If I could, I would give up anything, my very soul, but I can’t. I just want to try to have some relationship with you going forward. Please.”

“You want to be in my life.” Claire’s voice sounded a cross between breathless and horrified. Her blue eyes went wide and Dean noticed she started curling in on herself slightly. “That’s why you have your lawyer brother working on this.”

“Claire – “ Benny started softly, but the young blonde shook her head drawing away from him slightly.

“Uncle Lucifer promised. He _promised_.” Claire’s arms were trembling and her eyes were swimming in tears. “He promised me that you couldn’t. That you couldn’t take me away.”

“Wait, whoa –“ Dean put his hands up, but Claire wasn’t even looking at him. She was staring at the ground as her breathing picked up.

“I-I can’t go, Papa.” Claire looked up at Benny, tears finally breaking free from her wide eyes. “Please, I don’t want to go.”

Benny wrapped Claire into a tight hug, his large bear form making her appear much smaller than she actually was and it pained Dean to see her so worked up. Claire shook in Benny’s arms, sobbing and whispering please over and over, like a mantra.

“I will die before I let ya go, baby girl. You’re mine, remember?” He squeezed her as if to emphasize the point, but Dean could hear the slight waver in his tone. “My baby girl. I chose ya, princess. I chose ya and daddy. Ya are my entire world and your brothers and I will die before I let ya go. Nothin’ is gonna change that.”

“But…but Alphas win all the time.” Claire sniffed, her hands clinging to Benny’s dirty work shirt. “The courts give them preference.”

“I will never let that happen to ya, Claire. Never.” Benny pulled away so he could look Claire in the face. “I promise, Claire, and ya know I never break a promise.” Claire nodded and sniffled, but Dean noticed she was still crying and her bottom lip was still quivering. “When they asked me if I accepted the responsibilities that came along with the adoption, what did I say?”

Claire looked down and bit her bottom lip and Benny just stood patiently, staring at Claire with nothing but love and protection radiating in his gaze.

“What did I say, Claire?” He prompted when the teen didn’t respond.

“Hell yeah.” Claire whispered with a small wet chuckle and Benny nodded with a smile.

“Hell yeah. I did then and I do now and nothin’ is gonna change that. You’re stuck with me, baby girl, for life.”

Claire threw her arms around Benny and hugged him tightly, burying her face in his shirt, but not so much that Dean couldn’t hear her whisper “promise?” to him.

“Always and forever.” Benny kissed the top of Claire’s head and held her tightly, looking over at Dean with a hard gaze that promised pain and death. “I think it’s time for ya to go.”

Dean opened his mouth to argue, but stopped when he heard Claire whisper “I love you, papa” to Benny. It was clear, so painfully clear that there was nothing for him here. Any chance he had was long gone. Dean nodded with a frown and took a deep breath, slowly walking towards the exit, noticing how Benny shifted so as to put himself between Claire and Dean.

“I’m so sorry, Claire.” Dean whispered as he passed before opening the door and slipping out into the night. Dean took only a few steps before he noticed Cas leaning up against the side of his van, his eyes pinned on Dean and his blue gaze anything, but welcoming. He also noticed something he completely failed to see that morning, a slight bump in Cas’s abdomen that most certainly had not been there when he last saw him.

“I’m so sorry, Cas.” Dean choked out as his heart broke once again at the life he was never going to get to have.

“I don’t need your apologies, Dean. I need you to go back to Kansas and stay away from my daughter.” Cas’s tone was like gravel and unwavering. There was something to be said about the almost primal protection instincts that kicked in with an Omega and especially a pregnant one. Dean stared at Cas with what he knew was a miserable expression, but Cas was unmoved. Cas nodded once and then left Dean standing there as he entered the diner. Before the door could close, Dean saw Cas come up behind Claire to wrap his arms around her and Benny wrap his arms around Cas.

“Dean Winchester.”

A familiar voice behind Dean caused the man to stiffen, his jaw firming as he slowly turned around to see Lucifer Novak standing there casually with an envelope in his hand. Dean didn’t even try to play stupid, he held out his hand and swallowed as Lucifer handed it over, his eyes almost seeming to glow in the moonlight.

“If you go anywhere near my brother or his family again, Winchester, I will end you. It will not be in court. It will be bloody and messy and they will never find all the pieces of your corpse.” Lucifer narrowed his eyes and then smiled maliciously. “Wait, that’s not really your M.O. is it? Okay, let me try that again. If you so much as think about my brother and his family again, I will see to it that your brother is disbarred and will never practice law again. I will see to it that his lovely wife never work in any gallery and have their house foreclosed and everything they love taken away.”

Dean glared at Lucifer and the overwhelming urge to strangle the man made his arms tingle. “And this?” he raised his hand.

Lucifer looked at it with a chuckle and shrugged. “I have to make it at least look like I went about it the legal way now don’t I? Will make it harder for you to try to blame me when your actions cost your baby brother everything he loves.”

“Sammy –“

“Will be safe as long as you remain smart, Dean. After all, it was always about protecting Sammy right?”

Dean clenched his jaw as Lucifer winked and walked away into the dark. Dean felt completely gutted and drained. He cast one last look at the diner, seeing through the partially opened blinds that Claire and Cas were now sitting at the counter and Benny was leaning forward talking to Claire, his face etched with determination and patience, a look that left no doubt that it wasn’t the first time Benny had been forced to have this conversation and thanks to Dean’s irrational decisions, wouldn’t be the last. Somehow, despite the overwhelming urge to curl up into a ball and never come back out, Dean made it over to his baby and got inside, thankfully waiting until the door closed before he lost control over his emotions. Leaning his head against his driving wheel, Dean cried and, not for the first time, wished he could undo the mistake he made all those years ago.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yeah, that’s that. I got the idea of Benny being Cas’s Alpha from a review on the last chapter and liked it and this happened. I wanted Benny to come across as sort of a kind-hearted man, which was why he was open and willing to talk, but when the going got tough, he became an absolute no bullshit kind of guy. When it came to protecting his family, good guy goes bye bye and I want there to be zero doubt that he loves Claire like she is his own. 
> 
> I also have a soft spot for sort of good-guy Lucifer. Like, yeah, he would totally do some illegal and nefarious shit to ruin Sam’s life to force Dean to comply, but like, it’s for the greater good of Cas and Claire so doesn’t that count for something? I also knew the only way Dean would stop is if it was dangerous for Sam because let’s be honest, it’s canon that their codependent relationship and Dean’s willing to sacrifice it all for Sam has caused some collateral damage over the seasons. 
> 
> I’m most likely done with this specific story, unless something strikes me so if you need some follow up, here you go:
> 
> Cas is pregnant again and the baby is a girl and an Omega and Benny will be stupid happy at having another daughter. Her name is Charlotte, named by Claire because Benny always read her Charlotte’s Web, and yeah, Benny cries big manly tears when Claire announces it. 
> 
> Claire gets put into counseling by Benny and Cas because they are worried about her after the whole fiasco with Dean. She sort of stays in a funk for a while, but eventually does snap out of it as time moves on and nothing crazy happens. 
> 
> Dean doesn’t try to contact Claire or Cas again. After witnessing first-hand what it was doing to Claire to try to force himself into her life, he backed off. It also helps that Lucifer is a total psycho and he knows that Luci will absolutely destroy Sam’s life. Dean does end up having a one night stand that leads to his daughter, Emma, that he raises as a single dad. Emma is in no way a replacement for Claire and Dean misses her, but he has finally reached the “acceptance” stage. 
> 
> Claire doesn’t come around. I know people like to have this sort of happy ever after, but life is ugly and messy. The whole father coming back when the kid is a teen actually happened to my cousin’s son and let me tell you, it left him in a bad way. He struggled with issues before that and then to have his dad decide once he was in high school he was worth it, yeah, it messed him up even more. I watched how it tore my cousin apart and how it tore her son apart. In the end, he wanted nothing to do with his dad and is happier that way. Sometimes, it’s better for the person to keep their distance and Claire is happy without Dean. It means a lot to her that Benny sticks around because he chose to and in the end it takes more than genetics to make a parent.


End file.
